The Colombo High Court has convicted and sentenced former Civil Aviation Minister Piyankara Jayaratne to seven years of rigorous imprisonment for corruption related to a misappropriated state fund payment in 2014.
Former Civil Aviation Minister Piyankara Jayaratne has been sentenced to seven years of rigorous imprisonment following his conviction on corruption charges brought by the Commission to Investigate Allegations of Bribery or Corruption (CIABOC). The verdict was delivered by Colombo High Court Judge Mohamed Mihail after a lengthy trial.
The case centers on a payment made from state-owned SriLankan Catering Ltd. to a private catering company in Marawila in 2014. According to the charges, Jayaratne, while serving as Aviation Minister, pressured a company executive to release funds for catering services at a United People's Freedom Alliance May Day rally for his political supporters. The exact amount of the payment is reported differently across sources, with one account citing Rs. 330,000 and another citing Rs. 320,000.
The court found that Jayaratne had induced the executive to authorize the payment, causing financial loss to the government. NewsFirst reports that the court imposed two concurrent seven-year sentences on separate charges, resulting in an effective term of seven years rather than fourteen. Additionally, Jayaratne was ordered to pay a fine of Rs. 200,000.
The case represents a significant conviction in Sri Lanka's efforts to address high-level corruption allegations within government institutions.